


Not a Mafia AU

by Bini_28



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bakery, Alternate Universe - College/University, Bakery and Coffee Shop, Baking, Flirting, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Mafia AU, Tsukishima Kei is Bad at Feelings, Valentine's Day, but he works at a bakery, daichi runs the bakery, daisuga is mentioned, its funny because bakery in hebrew is ma'afiya, tsukishima has celiac
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-17
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:33:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26516017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bini_28/pseuds/Bini_28
Summary: Basically another bakery AU - Tsukishima is this grumpy bakery employee, he has celiac but still works there, broke student and stuff. Then, there's this one regular costumer, whose name is unknown, but he makes Tsukishima feel things.
Relationships: Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi
Comments: 6
Kudos: 102





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Last chapter wow! this fic has been really fun to write, just a fluff of my favorite hq ship being cute and in love, as well as some hurt/comfort and funny bits for the soul. There wasn't really any plot at all, but I still like it a lot.

Out of all the work places in town, no one would expect a guy with Celiac to work at a bakery.  
At the job interview, the bakery manager, a guy named Daichi, offered him a plate of cookies that got politely refused, and was surprised to hear the reason for the refusal. He asked him what made him want to start working at a place that sold bread, cakes and pastries of all sorts. 

The reason Tsukishima Kei tried to get that job was a result of a chain of embarrassing moments he didn't want to admit, especially in a job interview.  
First of all, he needed the money. He was a freshman college student who lived in a tiny apartment, 15 minutes by bus from campus. He did have a scholarship, thanks to his good grades from high school, but he did have to pay some of his tuition, and rent. This wasn't embarrassing for itself, the embarrassing part was the fact that he was fired from any other job he tried to take during this year. Usually, he could keep a job for about a month, but then the manager decided he was "not welcoming enough" to the customers and he would have to find another one.  
The next embarrassing part in the story was the reason he eventually did try to work at the bakery. He was aware there's a bakery right out of campus, but he never was inside, let alone thought about working there. What does a guy with Celiac have to look for at a bakery?

But then, one October afternoon, as he was walking past the bakery to the bus station, something caught his eye. More specifically, someone. A guy he never saw before, with messy black hair, got into the bakery. Tsukishima only got a short look at his face - mostly average, with a bunch of freckles and a slight grin - before the transparent door closed behind him, and Tsukishima stood there for a few seconds, staring at the air and the "looking for workers" sign.  
Tsukishima prided himself in being a rational person, but no logical reason could explain why he saved the phone number on the sign and called it as he got home.  
He didn't tell Daichi this whole story, he just said he needed a job to help him with paying rent. He was accepted, and was doing better than in any of his previous workplaces. Daichi didn't mind his attitude, the bakery was really close to campus, and Daichi managed the shifts really well, so he always came to work right before or right after school, and he had some okay co-workers, most of them also college students, although a bit too noisy and lively sometimes. Of course, Tsukishima couldn't help at the bakery itself, so he was usually at the cash box or making coffee. 

After a while working at the bakery, he started getting to know the regular customers. For example, there was a very short guy with spiky hair, bleached at the front and he was always ordering an espresso and buying a chocolate croissant. He was usually accompanied by either a tall, long haired guy who put a lot of sugar in his coffee and got grain bread, or a guy with shaved head who ordered iced coffee even during the winter, and also bought a lot of cookies usually.  
Another regular customer was a guy with black hair. Tsukishima really disliked that guy because he had extremely specific orders every time - coffee with this exact amount of milk, a sandwich with two pieces of cheese. There was only one worker at the bakery who could always make his orders just like he wanted. His name was Hinata, he was short and red-headed, and was one of the most annoying people Tsukishima ever knew. They usually had one shift together each week, and the black haired guy always arrived at this time. Tsukishima was pretty sure he and Hinata were acquaintances, because Hinata addressed him as "Kageyama'', but other than that, they never showed it.  
And there was also THAT guy, the one he saw that day. He didn't come on a specific day or hour, and he didn't have any usual order - sometimes he'll get a sandwich, sometimes a coffee, sometimes cake or other pastries. Tsukishima didn't know why, he found himself really interested in that guy. He was probably a student - he looked around his age - but the college was too big for them to know each other. He seemed like the plainest guy, but Tsukishima took a special interest in him. He found himself passing long shifts in hopes that customers would arrive. 

One Wednesday morning, after the boy got out of the bakery with a fresh bun and a cup of coffee, Tsukishima found himself staring at his back on his way out.  
"Do you know him?" asked his co-worker, a girl named Yachi who was slightly younger than him and was scared of anyone and anything. She was a little annoying and too energetic, but Tsukishima was pretty sure she was scared of him too.  
"Who?"  
"That guy who just left. You look at him differently."  
"I only saw him a couple of times here. What do you mean, look at him differently?"  
"Like you don't hate him like you hate everyone else"  
"I don't really hate everyone, I just don't particularly have a reason to like anybody"  
"Okay so even if you don't hate everybody, you still looked at him differently."  
"I really don't know what you're talking about." Tsukishima told her. He really was confused, and he thought of himself as someone who can read other people very well. He didn't remember Yachi ever starting a conversation with him like that. He decided to abandon the subject, but his mind kept wishing that guy would come back. Usually, Tsukishima's shifts were Monday, Thursday and Friday afternoons, and Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. He tried to make sense of that one boy's visits to the bakery, but there was such a pattern - sometimes mornings, sometimes noons, sometimes daily and sometimes once a week.  
Tsukishima tried to deduce stuff about the guy, but there was not much to work with. He guessed he was vegan or lactose intolerant, because he never took pastries with cream, and always asked for soy milk in his coffee or hot chocolate. He always paid in cash. He never arrived with other people.  
He was also one of the nicest customers. He was always saying "good morning/evening" as he entered the bakery, and Tsukishima didn't know if he imagined it, but sometimes it seemed like he was waiting until Tsukishima wasn't busy to pay for his order. It made Tsukishima want to be actually polite himself.

One day, as the other boy left the bakery, Tsukishima told him, "have a nice day," and Yachi seemed like she was going to scream.  
"Shut up" he told her before she could add anything.  
"I didn't say anything! I was just going to suggest you will start a conversation with him next time he comes here."  
"Who says I want to? He's just a random costumer"  
"you just GREETED him! You never do that even to Daichi."  
"Maybe I was finally starting to be polite to my customers, like Daichi always wants me to be." Their conversation was cut off as other customers entered the bakery.  
He didn't have to debate with himself whether to actually start a conversation with the boy. The next day, he arrived at the bakery just before closing and bought two loaves of bread.  
"Anything else?" Tsukishima asked at the cash box.  
"No, I don't think so." the boy said. "By the way, you're new here, right? I only started seeing you work here for about a month."  
"That's right," Tsukishima said.  
"Nice! Well, anyway, thanks, see you!" he said as he left. Tsukishima shot a look at Yachi, who said nothing.

"You know, he never comes when you're not here," Yachi said the next day. Of course, Tsukishima knew who she was talking about.  
"Seriously?"  
"Yup! He used to come in other times, but looked kinda disappointed every time you weren't working, and I think now he realized what your shift schedule is."  
"It makes no sense."  
"Are you sure you guys don't know each other?"  
"Never seen him outside of the bakery." this wasn't a lie, actually. The first time he saw the guy was when he entered the bakery, but Tsukishima didn't tell Yachi this part.  
Tsukishima kept overthinking this conversation. Why the hell would the boy only visit the bakery when he was there? They weren't friends, they weren't even acquaintances. Still, he kind of felt happy inside, knowing he never missed out on the boy's visits to the bakery. He was also tired of calling him "that boy" in his head, but he had no idea what was his name. 

"This customer was definitely flirting with you." Daichi said one day, when he and Tsukishima were the only ones in the bakery, and the guy just left.  
"What the hell Daichi, why would you think that?"  
Daichi laughed. "First of all, he waited until you were free to make his order, and then the way he leaned on the counter and looked at you as you made the coffee? No place for doubt." Tsukishima did notice how the boy was pretending to be busy choosing which bread to buy while he was helping another customer, but did he really look at him in a special way?  
"You're imagining things"  
"I might be, but all I'm saying is that I met Sugawara through this bakery as well, and he's the reason we have the best cakes in town." Sugawara was Daichi's husband, and he could not go through a conversation without mentioning how they met at the bakery, and now they were working together, Daichi making the bread and Sugawara the cakes.  
"I don't know, I've never eaten one of them" Tsukishima tried to change the subject.  
"Oh right, right. Maybe we should really start making more gluten-free pastries here." Daichi said and left the topic.  
Tsukishima usually wasn't bothered by what other people thought about him, but his mind kept returning to that boy. Was he really flirting with him? No way. Tsukishima would've noticed. It wasn't flirting. It was just the way that guy probably acted with everyone. Daichi just thinks everyone else would also find the love of their lives through his bakery. Yeah, that was a logical explanation. Totally explained why Tsukishima would often stop concentrating on his job and think about the smile the boy always had on his face when he entered the bakery. And now every time that boy entered the shop, both Daichi and Yachi would shoot a meaningful look at Tsukishima, implying the two should talk or start dating or God knows.  
Tsukishima wasn't sure if, or how, these two knew he was gay. He never told anyone at the bakery, even though it would probably be a "safe space", there was no need for them to know. But they still decided that he should get together with that one customer, and Tsukishima did almost a great job convincing himself there was no flirting at all. 

But one day, it was impossible to believe that anymore. It was a Friday afternoon, one of his busiest shifts, so there were more workers than usual - Yachi, Hinata and him were at the shop, while Daichi and Sugawara were working at the back room which was the actual bakery.  
And then he arrived, buying soy-milk hot chocolate and cookies and waiting a little until Tsukishima was at the cash box.  
"That would be 500 yen'' Tsukishima said. The boy was looking through his wallet and put down the exact amount, then said a polite "thank you" and left.  
When Tsukishima picked up the bill, he realized there was something else there. A piece of paper with the word "Kei" scribbled on one side. He was a little confused until he remembered the nametag on his shirt. He flipped it, and there was a phone number and a name written underneath. Yamaguchi Tadashi. He quickly shoved the note in his pants pocket, because his coworkers were staring at him, including Daichi, who found just the right time to come into the shop with a tray full of loaves of bread. Tsukishima shot his scariest look at them and returned to work, feeling the note burning a whole in his pocket.  
So. Yamaguchi Tadashi. That was the name of the face who filled Tsukishima's mind. It suited him, not very unique, but somehow cute. And he actually gave him his number. Tsukishima wasn't dumb, he knew what this meant, he couldn't ignore it anymore. But what should he do now? Would he really call a stranger he only met once in a few days as a customer? It was very unlike him, he wasn't especially interested in dating, but he couldn't ignore the attraction he felt toward that boy. It wouldn't hurt, trying to get to know him. Tsukishima didn't really have any close friends, or friends at all, to be honest, so maybe it will be nice. Of course, he wouldn't tell Yachi or Daichi, they would be too satisfied to bear. 

A few hours later, he got home. The busy shift provided a great distraction, and it calmed him a little bit. Of course, it didn't last. When he changed his clothes before going to sleep, the note fell out of his pocket, and he was flooded with the dilemma again.  
You have nothing to lose, he thought to himself. He carefully dialed the number. The next 15 seconds felt like forever, and were full of doubts - he should've texted instead. He shouldn't have called at all - but then he heard the somewhat familiar voice say hello.  
"Hi, it's Kei"


	2. Chapter 2

Yamaguchi was nervous. He was always nervous, actually. But today, he was much more nervous than before. At around 4PM on Friday, he finished his classes for today, and made a decision. It was probably the most stupid decision he ever made - right after choosing English as his major, because no matter how much he liked the language, he was terrible at it, and was struggling to keep his grades passing. Writing that little note was almost as irresponsible as that.  
Three words and a phone number, that was all. Waiting until the tall bakery employee named Kei was free, making a little show of rummaging through his wallet for cash, putting the note right under the bill and getting out of the bakery as fast as he could, before he could see if Kei received the note.

Yamaguchi had a paper to hand in next Monday, but he kept checking his phone every few minutes, even though he turned the notifications on and would hear if he got a text. It was dumb, so dumb. Maybe Kei accidentally dropped the note before he noticed it. Maybe he noticed it and thought it was too pathetic to even respond. Maybe he was just still at work, actually, the bakery closed at 8PM, there was still time. But still, why would the handsome dude from the bakery text the completely average random customer he probably didn't even recognize, even though Yamaguchi was doing his best to pass there during his shifts.  
If before 8 he was nervous, when it started getting later Yamaguchi was on the verge of panic. It was pathetic. He shouldn't be so worried over a guy he never talked to. He wrote about one paragraph in his paper.

So far, the first year of college has been kind of disappointing. He was really expecting some sort of a "new place, new me", but he was still a shy, insecure loner, just like in high school. His roommate at the dorms spent most of his time at his girlfriend's apartment, which just made Yamaguchi feel even worse about the fact that he was gay and never dated anyone. It just didn't work out for him, and he wasn't sure why.  
Maybe it's because you always crush on people you don't even know. Like that guy you always see at the cafeteria, or that damn Kei, all handsome and calm and serious.  
He typed another line in his paper, and checked his phone again. No new texts. Every minute passed like an hour, and he was ready to give it up, and try to avoid the bakery at the hours Kei was working.  
And then, at 21:46, his phone rang. He didn't recognize the number, his heart started racing and his mind raised expectations. He answered and turned on the speaker, he didn't like holding the phone close to his ear. "Hello?" he asked.

"Hi, it's Kei." came the voice from the other side. Yamaguchi dropped the phone on the bed. It was him. He did call. "Hello?" Kei said and Yamaguchi realized he should answer. Great, messing it up right at the beginning. He didn't really know what to say now, he didn't think that far, as he was sure Kei would never call.   
"Yeah, yeah, I'm here. It's Yamaguchi. I... I see you got my note."   
"Yup" short answer. Probably meant he called just to be polite and turn him down.   
"I... Umm... I don't really know what to say now. I was... Seeing you in the bakery very often, though you probably don't recognize me."  
"No, I know who you are." he did?? This surprised Yamaguchi. Even though he did come there often, there was nothing memorable about his face or personality.   
"Oh, cool, nice." Yamaguchi knew he was acting like an idiot, and this wasn't even face-to-face. "So, um, that's nice. I was thinking... Maybe we could, you know, meet up sometime?"   
"Do you mean a date?"   
"Uh, if that's how you want to call it. It doesn't have to be a date, if you're not interested or you know... Not gay" this, of course, was one of Yamaguchis worries about asking Kei out. Even before thinking about the fact Kei would refuse because he is ugly, or boring, or annoying, he had the much more rational worry - that this guy didn't belong to the small percentage of boys who actually liked boys.   
"Oh, I don't have a problem calling it like that."  
"Great!" Yamaguchi was too nervous to be actually happy, but he was glad. "So... Um... When are you free?" he just asked as his roommate got into the dorm, with his girlfriend. Dammit. He couldn't get a date while he wasn't alone in the room, considering he never came out to his roommate. "Wait, sorry. I have to hang up now, I'm sorry. Text me?"   
"Okay" came the response, and he hung up. So much for his first time asking someone out. It could have gone worse, he thought. Now, should I text him and wait for him to text me? Wow, dating was confusing and he didn't even do anything yet. He said hello to his roommate and his girlfriend, and pretended to concentrate on his essay. 

Kei didn't text until the next morning, and Yamaguchi would lie if he said he could think about anything else until then. He decided to wait a little bit, so he won't seem desperate . When Kei finally texted, he didn't apologize for not messaging earlier. It was a Saturday morning, and Yamaguchi's roommate was out already. 

[7:58] Kei: Sunday, 11:00?  
[8:01] Yamaguchi Tadashi: Do you mean tomorrow?   
[8:01] Kei: Yes.   
[8:02] Yamaguchi Tadashi: where?

Then Kei sent a location of a café downtown. Yamaguchi has never been there, but he knew the area. 

[8:03] Yamaguchi Tadashi: Nice! See you there :D  
[8:03] Kei: See you. 

In the back of his mind, Yamaguchi was aware he had that English paper he planned on dedicating the weekend to finishing, but he couldn't focus on anything at all. He, Yamaguchi Tadashi, the average, awkward, quiet boy that never really had any friends, has a date. Nothing said it'll be a good date, but it was more than he even imagined. 

Sunday morning arrived too slowly and too quickly at the same time. Yamaguchi was even more nervous then when he left Kei the note. He spent way too long trying to make his hair look decent, even though he knew the December wind outside was going to mess it up as soon as he went out. He didn't dress too fancy, but he put on his nicest jacket. Being so nervous, he got out too early and arrived 20 minutes before eleven. He just stood outside the cafe, slightly shaking from the cold and the stress. Kei arrived just in time, and eyed Yamaguchi judgingly. He was wearing a thick coat and a scarf, but Yamaguchi recognized him from afar thanks to his remarkable height and blond hair.   
"Why were you waiting outside? It's not very smart of you, it's really cold" he said and gestured to Yamaguchi to get in with him.   
They sat by an empty table, Tsukishima wiping his glasses which were full of steam the second they got inside the warm café.   
Yamaguchi ordered a pie and soy-milk coffee, and Kei ordered a gluten-free strawberry shortcake.  
"Are you on a special diet or something?" Yamaguchi asked.  
"Nope, I have Celiac."  
"Wait, what? But you work at a bakery." Kei looked like he got asked this question almost on a daily basis.  
"Yeah yeah. Student life is hard," he answered. "Are you vegan? You ordered soy milk"  
"Ah, nope. I'm lactose intolerant. It's not that bad, but I'll get a terrible stomach ache if I drink regular coffee."  
Surprisingly, Yamaguchi felt less nervous now, when they actually met. Something about Kei made him feel actually confident.  
At one point, Yamaguchi addressed him as Kei, and he told him his last name was Tsukishima. Yamaguchi looked at him for a few seconds.   
"Tsukki." he said eventually, looking at the other for approval of the nickname.   
"Fine, whatever."

They sat there and talked for a long time. The cakes were long gone - and Yamaguchi discovered the reason they met there was that according to Tsukki, it was the only place in town with a decent gluten-free strawberry shortcake. They talked about college life - their majors, their professors, their apartments - about their families and hometowns. They didn't have much in common, but the conversation was mostly pleasant. They were at the café for about two hours, and then proceeded to take a walk in the city center. During the walk, they were mostly quiet, they introduced all the important things, and neither of them was very talkative, but it was nice. At around 3PM, they decided it was enough for today - both had duties to complete.

Yamaguchi was probably the happiest he was since starting college. He didn't realize how lonely he was until then. Since that day, his visits to the bakery were much more frequent, sometimes even twice a day - and the other employees at the bakery would recognize him too and look at Tsukki and smile every time he came in. They would meet every weekend, sometimes just sitting next to each other, each one writing his own essays for the next week's classes.

For about a month, they didn't speak of a title to the relationship they formed. There was that first date, but then they were just meeting up like normal friends. Yamaguchi wasn't sure if he wanted something to change, or he was okay with the way things were. He got to know Tsukki, his good and bad sides, and he still had that excitement bubbling up inside him every time they met, he guessed he could call it a crush, but the word seemed childish, unfitting.  
It wouldn't be out of the blue if Yamaguchi asked Tsukki to be his boyfriend or anything like that. After all, they did consider their first meeting as a date, and Tsukki agreed to go out with him, so he must feel some way toward him too. That was the part Yamaguchi doubted. He knew he was falling for Tsukki, with his intelligence and cynical remarks and honesty, that was making his loneliness disappear, but did Tsukki see him as something more than just a nice friend who would always be up for an invitation to come over and study together?  
The answer came on a Saturday evening, early February. They were at Tsukki's apartment, both sitting on the couch with their laptops open, doing some school work. Yamaguchi was incredibly tired, and Tsukki would shake him a bit every few minutes to wake him up, usually followed by some remark. 

"Can we take a break?" Yamaguchi yawned. "stop with the essays, maybe make some coffee to wake us up a little"  
"I'm completely awake, and I don't have any soy milk for you"  
"Ah come on, I'll deal with normal coffee every once in a while."  
"You won't, don't be an idiot. I don't want you lying on my sofa crying your stomach hurts."  
"Right, sorry" Yamaguchi said. "But I can't keep working like this."   
"Ugh, alright" Tsukki got up and walked to the little kitchen, returning with a box of cookies. By that time, Yamaguchi was half asleep on the sofa.

"Hey, Tsukki" He said as he noticed him come back. "C'mere" Yamaguchi was aware he wasn't really thinking, he was too tired for that.  
"What do you want?" Tsukki approached and sat back on the sofa, putting the cookies on the table. They were gluten-free cookies, of course, but they were made by Sugawara, who finally started making gluten free pastries that were actually really nice.  
"I really like you," Yamaguchi said without thinking. "like, really. Since we started talking and meeting, I feel so much happier, less lonely. I want to spend more time with you." he took a bite off a cookie, the sugar making his mind focus a little and actually think about what he just said. "uh... I mean, we have gotten really close lately and I am having a great time whenever we're together, but none of us ever said anything about... Are we doing anything with it?"  
"what do you mean? You're really not clear."  
"What I mean is, Are we dating? I mean , we went on that first date, but now I'm really unsure what's going on, and I really like you and want there to be something more." He blurted out. Tsukki looked at him and he was afraid he messed something up.  
"Aren't we already dating?" Tsukki finally said. "We're always meeting up, we went out a couple of times, isn't that what you mean when you say date?"  
Yamaguchi moved a little bit towards Tsukki, he tried doing this before, being more physically close, but Tsukki usually always moved back. This time he didn't. "it is dating, but... It feels like it should be more than that. I really like you, Tsukki." he said again. Tsukki said nothing. He was never talkative, and usually Yamaguchi didn't mind, he enjoyed the silence, but now he desperately wanted him to say something. The nervousness made him feel more awake, but not in a good way.   
"You're great, Yamaguchi. I am not really the emotional kind. I am okay with what we have now, but I guess... If it's really important to you."  
Yamaguchi allowed himself to move even closer to Tsukki, so he was basically leaning on him. Tsukki didn't back away, he actually moved his arm a little bit so it was wrapping over Yamaguchi's shoulder.  
"You're the best" Yamaguchi mumbled, making himself comfortable, a little calmer than before and sleepy again.  
Tsukki looked at him, and Yamaguchi was sure he saw some hint of fondness in his eyes. They were really close, and Yamaguchi reached a little forward and kissed Tsukki's cheek. He was a little embarrassed of the gesture, but it felt nice.

"Disgusting. Do it again" Tsukki said with a slight grin. Yamaguchi smiled too, and reached again, this time, Tsukki turned his head a little bit toward him.  
Yamaguchi was so shocked, he backed away for a second. Did he actually kiss Tsukki now? He didn't expect it, even though he really wanted it. He was sure he was completely red, considering how warm his cheeks felt.   
"What?" Tsukki asked.   
"Nothing, it was just really nice."  
"Great,"   
There was a short silence, so Yamaguchi spoke, "Hey Tsukki, can I stay here for tonight? It's getting late, and I'll probably fall asleep on the bus and miss my station and find myself on the other side of town and-"  
"Shut up," Tsukki cut him. "You can stay here and sleep on the sofa." Yamaguchi smiled at him.  
"Thanks, Tsukki."  
"And we need to return to our essays now, I think our break was long enough."   
"C'mon Tsukki, do we have too?" in response, Tsukki surprised Yamaguchi by kissing him again. Short kiss, but it made Yamaguchi warm and energetic.   
"Yes, shut up."  
They reopened their laptops, and returned to work on their essays, sitting much closer than before.  
As he fell asleep, later that night (his essay still not finished), he came to the realization that a good relationship was more about the little things, the small gestures, and the awareness that a feeling was mutual. And right now, he had all of them.


	3. Chapter 3

The week after the night of their first kiss had been the best week Yamaguchi ever had. He was extremely happy, even more energetic than usual, as noted by a few of his fellow classmates. He was also more confident, something about the fact that he gathered the courage to talk to Tsukki made him feel better about speaking to other people.  
Yamaguchi stopped at the bakery every evening, just before the end of Tsukkis shifts, so they could take a little walk together, sometimes go to that Cafe where they had their first date. They usually just walked in silence, sometimes holding hands. Yamaguchi had set himself a goal of making Tsukki open up more, feeling comfortable with the concept of physical intimacy and dating. He has been persistent enough, not forcing anything but suggesting they'll get closer, maybe kiss, tell each other stuff. It was mostly working, Tsukki was getting a little softer as the days went by. Smiling more, being a bit more free. Sometimes, instead of telling Yamaguchi to shut up, he would kiss him, and the effect would be exactly the same, except Yamaguchi wouldn't feel the need to apologize.

Of course, Tsukki was still Tsukki, mostly cold and a little bit mean and trying not to care about anything. He did care about their relationship, or so Yamaguchi hoped. Valentines Day was coming up in a few days, and unwillingly Yamaguchi thought of it as a little test. Tsukishima didn't care about sappy couple traditions, so he probably despised Valentines. Yamaguchi didn't exactly like it either, because it was a yearly reminder he was single and lonely. This year it was different though, he did have a boyfriend, and he was preparing to give him the very best.  
But what could he give Tsukki for Valentine's day? He wasn't the type who loved gifts, and there weren't many candies he could give him, too. He would buy that strawberry shortcake, of course, and he had seen a super adorable dinosaur plushie in a shop downtown. Maybe chocolates, too? And he should write something.

He spent all afternoon on February 13th on buying stuff - the plushie, cake, chocolates, and a little card he would write in - and then went to the bakery, where Tsukki was supposed to just finish his shift. But Tsukki wasn't in the bakery when he walked in, only the short redhead named Shoyo.  
"Hey, is Tsukki here?" Yamaguchi asked. By now, all the usual employees knew they were close, but they didn't know they were dating.   
"Tsukki? Oh, right, Saltyshima" Hinata laughed. "he... isn't here"   
"What? He always works evenings this day, he would've updated me if he wasn't here" Yamaguchi protested.  
"Dunno, he's just isn't working today."

Yamaguchi felt his stomach sink. Why didn't Tsukki tell him about it? Last week he did inform him when he was sick and didn't arrive at work. He was probably sick, that was it. But if he wasn't feeling well today, will he be able to meet up tomorrow, on Valentines? He pulled out his phone.

[19:57] Yamaguchi: Hey, you alright?  
[19:57] Yamaguchi: Shoyo said you weren't working today. 

Tsukki didn't answer for almost an hour. Weird, he was usually available and answered fast.

[20:45] Tsukki: Sorry, I had school work so I took a day off.  
[20:45] Yamaguchi: oh  
[20:45] Yamaguchi: See you tomorrow?  
[20:46] Tsukki: My shift ends at seven.  
[20:46] Yamaguchi: good luck with school! 💕  
[20:46] Tsukki: Thanks.

Yamaguchi closed his phone. It felt like Tsukki was avoiding him, but maybe he was just overly stressed, as usual. He just wanted to show Tsukki how happy he made him. Maybe he should get more things for tomorrow? It didn't feel like enough. But maybe Tsukki wouldn't appreciate it, and will just dismiss it as too clingy or sappy or something like that.  
Then, he had an idea. He put on his shoes and went out to the nearest supermarket, which was just about to close. He bought everything that's likely to be included in a gluten free cake. He would bake it in the common kitchen of his dorms, tomorrow after his classes. He was excited, because he knew how irritated Tsukki was about the lack of decent gluten-free alternatives. And why? What's the great difference when you're just switching the flour?   
It was harder than expected. The cake turned out weird, flat and a little burned. Yamaguchi tried not to panic. He had enough ingredients to try a new cake. He looked for a different recipe, now searching for a gluten-free one instead of choosing the first Google result of "chocolate cake" and replacing the flour. 

The next cake was a little better, but it was dry and still weirdly flat. The hour was six forty five, no time to make another cake, and he should head out to the bakery, but he felt really bad. The cakes were a failure, he just wanted to make Tsukki happy. He felt his throat tighten, no, don't cry, calm down and head out to meet Tsukki, without the cakes. It was no good. He started crying. He was pathetic and could never be good enough to actually make something. Seven o'clock had already passed. Tsukki was probably waiting for him, or he headed home as he saw Yamaguchi didn't arrive.  
And then he heard a knock on the door. Was it his roommate? Probably not, he never knocked, and he was probably spending his Valentines with his girlfriend.   
"just a moment" he said and wiped his nose, then got up and opened the door. There, holding a bag in his hand, was Tsukki.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------

Tsukishima did hate valentines day. It was unnecessary and idiotic, just an excuse for couples to buy a lot of useless junk. Usually, he just ignored the date on that day. But this year he was dating Yamaguchi, and his boyfriend was definitely the type to get excited all over dumb stuff like that.   
Tsukishima tried to never get attached to other people, close relationships caused nothing but pain, but Yamaguchi was a whole other story. Yamaguchi was honest, caring and loving, and it gave Tsukishima a sense of stability and relieved the lonely feeling he didn't know he felt. He wanted to show Yamaguchi how much he meant to him, but Tsukishima was incredibly bad with words and with processing his feelings, and to be honest, Valentines was a great opportunity to do so. Tsukishima didn't think some heart shaped chocolates and flowers could convey his feelings properly, and then he decided to completely give up his honor and talk to Daichi.

"Hey, Daichi," he said as he walked into the back room of the bakery. "Can you help me with something?" Daichi looked very surprised and nodded. "So do you remember that guy you thought was flirting with me? Well... Um... We are dating." Daichi let out a satisfied "Oh". Tsukishima frowned. "Shut up. Anyway, Valentines is tomorrow, and I want to do something, and not these crappy Valentines flowers or something"  
Daichi though for a little while.  
"Suga always bakes me cookies at Valentines and my birthday, you could ask him to teach you"  
"he's lactose intolerant though, he can't eat anything with milk or butter,"  
"I'm sure Suga has some recipes"  
He did, and they spent all afternoon baking cookies and decorating them, Daichi covering for him in the main room. Apparently, they stayed late, and as he got out of the bakery, he noticed a missed message from Yamaguchi. He lied about having some school work, but he felt bad about lying, about letting him down. He hoped he could make up for it tomorrow.  
Tsukishima really couldn't believe he was in a relationship. For about 20 years of his life, he tried to distance himself from anyone, but Yamaguchi just broke through (most of) his walls, and lived rent free inside of his heart. Goddammit, Tsukishima often thought, you just let that random boy get you so soft? But Yamaguchi wasn't "a random boy" anymore. Tsukishima was closer to him than he ever was with anyone else, and it seemed like it's been the same way to Yamaguchi. The other boy relied on him constantly, and Tsukishima was glad to have someone who could bear his sarcasm and general assholeness.

On Valentines itself, Tsukki worked as usual, although the bakery was full of customers buying cakes and pastries for their loved ones. Sugawara worked extremely hard to make so many, and Tsukishima was surprised he found the time to help him with his stupid romantic gesture. He even wrote a little note - well, not so little, as he was trying to stuff in everything he couldn't express in words. Ew.  
He was expecting Yamaguchi to appear at the end of his shift, as he usually does, but he didn't. Tsukishima waited for a few minutes after he finished working, and texted him, but there was no sign of Yamaguchi. Tsukishima wasn't the worrying type, he guessed Yamaguchi was at his dorm, studying or just not noticing the time, so that's where he headed.

Yamaguchi opened the door, and he had been obviously crying, his eyes were red and his cheeks were wet. The tiny apartment has been a mess, just like the communal kitchen right outside his room. Two burnt, flat cakes were on the table.   
"Why are you crying?" Tsukishima asked. In response, Yamaguchi buried himself into Tsukishima's chest. Tsukishima's first instinct was to back away from the tears and the snot, but he reminded himself it was Yamaguchi, and he needed his support right now.  
"I'm sorry, Tsukki! I was just trying to make something for you and I messed up and I am the worst boyfriend ever." Tsukishima hugged him, even though he felt uncomfortable, standing at the entrance to the room with an open door.

"Calm down, Yamaguchi. Let's get inside and you'll explain to me what you have done." He said. They walked inside and sat on the bed. "By the way, I brought you something," Tsukishima added and pulled out the box of cookies and the little note. Yamaguchi started crying again, and even harder as he read the note.  
"You're the best, this is the best. I love you so much. You... You actually baked these for me... For Valentine's day... And... I'm sorry what I tried was such a fail. This is so good though.."  
"Shut up, Yamaguchi", Tsukishima said and kissed him. Yamaguchi's lips were salty from the tears. "You tried baking gluten-free cakes for me?" Yamaguchi nodded.   
"Okay. First off all, you can't just replace the flour in a normal recipe, this just wouldn't work."  
"Oh. Sorry, I'm an idiot."  
"It's a common mistake. My mom took years to learn how to cook great gluten free stuff. I appreciate the effort." Tsukishima's instincts were telling him to dismiss Yamaguchi's work, he did not deserve it, it was too good for him, but pushed these voices back.   
"I... I bought you other stuff too!" Yamaguchi pointed at a bag on the table, which contained a big dinosaur plush, a few cheesy Valentines chocolates, and his favorite cake. Again, he was about to reject the gifts, tell him that Valentines day is stupid and he shouldn't have done anything for him. He shouldn't care so much. But he did like it a lot. Yamaguchi thought of the things he liked, that would make him happy. Yamaguchi looked at him, pride shining through his tearing eyes. 

"This... It's great." Tsukishima said. "Thank you."   
"You like it?"   
"of course." Yamaguchi buried himself in Tsukishima's arms again. Tsukishima felt the need to protect him - from his own loneliness, his low self esteem, and even a little bit from Tsukishima himself - so he hugged him tight.   
"Tsukki, I love you." Yamaguchi mumbled into his chest, and another piece of the walls on Tsukishima's heart melted a little.  
"I... I do, too." They sat like that for a while. Five minutes? Half an hour? Saying nothing. 

"Shit, Tsukki. I forgot to clean the kitchen, everyone on the floor will kill me." Yamaguchi suddenly remembered.   
"So let's go clean it." Tsukishima let him go, and they quickly cleaned the terrible mess Yamaguchi left. Then, they returned to the room.   
"Try the cookies," Tsukishima said. "Sugawara helped me with them, so they're probably fine. There's no milk or butter, it's okay."   
"Wait, Tsukki! These have actual flour, right? How did you make them?"   
"I used gloves and washed my hands, it's not like I can't be around flour, I just can't eat it."   
"Oh, right." Yamaguchi nodded and grabbed a cookie with green frosting. His face lit up. "Tsukki, this is amazing. These are the best cookies I have ever eaten!"   
"You're exaggerating"   
"I really am not. No one ever made cookies... For me, and considering my allergy, it's amazing."  
"I knew this is what would make you happy."  
"You are making me happy. You could just call my name and I'd be delighted. This is way beyond everything."

Tsukishima still felt weird about all this affection. He had a hard time trusting people, getting close to others, so he convinced himself it was not worth it.   
But he was sitting with Yamaguchi next to the table, each one eating the sweets the other brought him, and they were watching dumb videos on Yamaguchi's phone, and then sitting on the bed again, being so close and warm in this February night.   
So maybe, just maybe, it was worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> This started as a joke between me and friends about the popular Haikyuu mafia AU, because the word is similar to the Hebrew word of bakery (maafiya),so I wrote a bakery fic. hope you like it, I had a lot of fun writing it!  
> Comments and Kudos are loved!


End file.
